We've had our 1994 H-26 for about 4 months now. We just got back from hosting a Catalina 22 Cruise on Kentucky Lake (had eight C-22's and one H-26 - should I mention that in strong winds the H-26 sailed rings around the smaller boats?). After much use by my wife and I this summer - we have some fairly basic questions regarding our H-26: 1. Trailer - has anyone had the telescoping feature of the trailer stick? I extended the trailer to retrieve my boat and I'm having a devil of a time getting it to retract. Do any of you lubricate it? Any ideas? *o 2. Floor - I guess the PO kept the boat in doors ... when we bought her in May - the teak floor looked almost perfect. In the intervening four months we've had many leaks - both through the center board - see #5 below (since fixed with 5200) and from the plexiglass top cover. I've ordered a canvas hatch cover - which will hopefully fix the hatch leaks - but at this time the floor looks like crap! *grr Any ideas on getting the floor to look better (it's delimating - small pieces of the top layer continually break off)? I've attempted to glue some back down - but this seems like a band-aid solution. Has anyone else experienced this? What have you done? My wife has suggested carpet or vinyl flooring - but again - this seems like a less than ideal solution. Could you put CETOL on it? Varnish? 3. Sails - for some reason I am unable to completely raise my Main Sail to the top of the mast. It raises to within 6 to 9 inches of the top ... there seems to be some wrinkling of the main luff near the foot of the sail. Putting additional tension on the haylard does not seem to make any difference. Do I have to loosen (or tighten) the topping lift when raising the sail? It is a Doyl sail - is this simply the nature of the beast? 4. Bimini - When we sail with the bimini extended - the end of the boom rubs on the top of the bimini. We've started sailing without the bimini to avoid wearing out the fabric. Does anyone else have this problem? (Going back to #3 above - would shortening the topping lift - to raise the boom be a solution? - I suspect that doing this would adversely impact the sail shape of the main.) 5. Water under the sink - I have fixed a major leak from the Center Board assembly beneath the table (thanks Crazy Dave!). *5 This was a major contributor to water entering the bilge and under the sink. I still get water under the sink after a sail. My question is - do other H-26 owners live with this condition? We're not talking about a lot of water (maybe a 1/2 pint or so) - but enought to ruin any groceries stored beneath the sink. 6. General finish - This is a beautiful boat! In sailing and trailering it over the last four months however, we've gotten some number of small scratches in the gel coat. :{ Any suggestions on restoring the hull to it's original condition? I know it probably can't be restored to look perfect - but (I'm assuming that other users get occasional dings and scrapes from time to time in the normal use of their boat) what does everyone else do to keep their boat looking great? If some or all of these questions have been adequately covered in the archives - I apologize for the redundancy. I do appreciate all the help provided by this forum. Tom Grass Grasshopper II
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h26 Main
Tom, I can only address myself to #3 and #4 We (my wife and myself) have had this problem in the past. The solution was to loosen the mainsheet when raising the sail. Of course, the sheet tightens the leech of the sail and prevented the sail from going all the way up. Stupid, I know. But we used to forget it often. We loosened the sheet, said a few bad words, and the main went up perfectly. If the main sail is all the way up, maybe it will pull the boom up and you won't have the problem of it riding on the bimini. But mine still did. I had a section of the foot of the main cut off at my local sailmaker. Problem solved. In this climate, a bimini is a must. Sailing without it is not an option. David King, "Molly"
Tom, I can only address myself to #3 and #4 We (my wife and myself) have had this problem in the past. The solution was to loosen the mainsheet when raising the sail. Of course, the sheet tightens the leech of the sail and prevented the sail from going all the way up. Stupid, I know. But we used to forget it often. We loosened the sheet, said a few bad words, and the main went up perfectly. If the main sail is all the way up, maybe it will pull the boom up and you won't have the problem of it riding on the bimini. But mine still did. I had a section of the foot of the main cut off at my local sailmaker. Problem solved. In this climate, a bimini is a must. Sailing without it is not an option. David King, "Molly"
Most of the same pblms here too..
My father bought a '94 H26 1 year ago and has experienced almost all the same problems, which are, thankfully, not major. 1. Trailer extension tongue is very hard to get back inside the trailer itself. We put a chock behind the tires and back up after spraying WD-40 in the area. 2. Floor was water stained and faded. Bleached the floor with the 2 part teak cleaners, sanded it lightly and applied several coats of Daly's Profin (not Seafin.) It's what Hunter used originally. Looks like new. (West can order it, or you can do directly to Daily's web site.) 3. The main doesn't go all the way to the top of the mast, but the sail is definately fully raised. There's a mark (black tape?) on the mast that seems to indicate the top of the sail. (PO add-on?) We've thought of raising the boom to take advantage of the extra few inches in order to clear the bimini. 4. Moved the bimini back to the center of the side rails via a homemade contraption. Works well although the boom can still brush the front of the bimini. We're just real careful with it. 5. We originally filled the bilge (not the tank) with water to wash out the crud in there. Water seeped under sink for months afterwards. It seems to find places between the ballast tank top and the cabin floor to sit, and eventually ends up under the sink. (Hunter confirmed that there is space between the two.) I think a small amount still seeps under there, but nothing major. 6. No comment, everyone has opinions on this subject and lots of stuff on the market. Good luck.
My father bought a '94 H26 1 year ago and has experienced almost all the same problems, which are, thankfully, not major. 1. Trailer extension tongue is very hard to get back inside the trailer itself. We put a chock behind the tires and back up after spraying WD-40 in the area. 2. Floor was water stained and faded. Bleached the floor with the 2 part teak cleaners, sanded it lightly and applied several coats of Daly's Profin (not Seafin.) It's what Hunter used originally. Looks like new. (West can order it, or you can do directly to Daily's web site.) 3. The main doesn't go all the way to the top of the mast, but the sail is definately fully raised. There's a mark (black tape?) on the mast that seems to indicate the top of the sail. (PO add-on?) We've thought of raising the boom to take advantage of the extra few inches in order to clear the bimini. 4. Moved the bimini back to the center of the side rails via a homemade contraption. Works well although the boom can still brush the front of the bimini. We're just real careful with it. 5. We originally filled the bilge (not the tank) with water to wash out the crud in there. Water seeped under sink for months afterwards. It seems to find places between the ballast tank top and the cabin floor to sit, and eventually ends up under the sink. (Hunter confirmed that there is space between the two.) I think a small amount still seeps under there, but nothing major. 6. No comment, everyone has opinions on this subject and lots of stuff on the market. Good luck.
Some answers.
1. The only time I used the trailer was towing it without the boat to my house. However, I did play with the extending tongue and found that the aft portion gets hung up on its cradle when placing back. I just pushed up on it but it didn't have a 3000+ lb. boat on. 2. I varnished the floor. Worked well but this year the boat was on jack stands and water pooled foward during a horizontal rain. Got under the varnish and discolored and delaminated some of it. Injecting glue and varnishing will help but eventually ya need a new sole. If your's is breaking up, you can make a new one, call Hunter, carpet or live with it. 3. What Molly said and your luff bolt rope may have shrunk. Common with the origional sails. This will let the boom droop, wrinkle the sail and may be the cause of number 4. I cut the stiching out of the lowest part of the bolt rope as it is attached only at the tack and head. That cured most of the wrinkles and boom droop. Takes a few hard sails to fully have the rope slide up. I didn't want to wait so I also cut the stiching from the bolt rope at the head. The sailmaker said that the bolt rope should only have the stiching cut at the foot. 4. (see 3.) 5. How many times have you sailed since you plugged the leak? Water can slosh around on top of the ballast tank and appear in other places (under the sinks) after heeling. Took me several months to completely dry it out. Lift the control cover and shine a light between the control extesion of the tank and the inside of the stairs. Hopefully you can see the top of the tank. Other sources, not fully sealing the compression post, leaks from the deck and hardware, leaks from the sinks when heeling (water can get rammed into the sinks from the through-hulls), hatch leaks, water container leaks, holes accidently drilled into the ballast tank, vent plug loose, ballast valve not sealing (put dry paper towels on both during heeling to check) and others. 6. Not my forte! alan
1. The only time I used the trailer was towing it without the boat to my house. However, I did play with the extending tongue and found that the aft portion gets hung up on its cradle when placing back. I just pushed up on it but it didn't have a 3000+ lb. boat on. 2. I varnished the floor. Worked well but this year the boat was on jack stands and water pooled foward during a horizontal rain. Got under the varnish and discolored and delaminated some of it. Injecting glue and varnishing will help but eventually ya need a new sole. If your's is breaking up, you can make a new one, call Hunter, carpet or live with it. 3. What Molly said and your luff bolt rope may have shrunk. Common with the origional sails. This will let the boom droop, wrinkle the sail and may be the cause of number 4. I cut the stiching out of the lowest part of the bolt rope as it is attached only at the tack and head. That cured most of the wrinkles and boom droop. Takes a few hard sails to fully have the rope slide up. I didn't want to wait so I also cut the stiching from the bolt rope at the head. The sailmaker said that the bolt rope should only have the stiching cut at the foot. 4. (see 3.) 5. How many times have you sailed since you plugged the leak? Water can slosh around on top of the ballast tank and appear in other places (under the sinks) after heeling. Took me several months to completely dry it out. Lift the control cover and shine a light between the control extesion of the tank and the inside of the stairs. Hopefully you can see the top of the tank. Other sources, not fully sealing the compression post, leaks from the deck and hardware, leaks from the sinks when heeling (water can get rammed into the sinks from the through-hulls), hatch leaks, water container leaks, holes accidently drilled into the ballast tank, vent plug loose, ballast valve not sealing (put dry paper towels on both during heeling to check) and others. 6. Not my forte! alan
Same Problems
Tom, Sorry I missed you guys down at the lake a few weeks ago. Would have been nice to run with you. Anyway,I've got the same problems with my H26. The sail has never gone all the way to the black mark on the mast. I just assumed that over time they just shrink. I tried loosening every line I had and still couldn't get it close. I used Profin on my sole and it gave it a real nice finish. Used the Seafin on the other wood work. My bimini is wearing at the same location. My wife is going to remake the whole bimini this winter after having good results on making a new hatch cover. In my case I think if I can pull the front lip of the bimini frame forward enough the boom misses the front edge. Next time you're down give us a holler. We're docked at Green Turtle Bay. Paul H S/V Linda Belle 95 H26
Tom, Sorry I missed you guys down at the lake a few weeks ago. Would have been nice to run with you. Anyway,I've got the same problems with my H26. The sail has never gone all the way to the black mark on the mast. I just assumed that over time they just shrink. I tried loosening every line I had and still couldn't get it close. I used Profin on my sole and it gave it a real nice finish. Used the Seafin on the other wood work. My bimini is wearing at the same location. My wife is going to remake the whole bimini this winter after having good results on making a new hatch cover. In my case I think if I can pull the front lip of the bimini frame forward enough the boom misses the front edge. Next time you're down give us a holler. We're docked at Green Turtle Bay. Paul H S/V Linda Belle 95 H26
GTB
Paul, We pulled out of GTB on Saturday. We (7 Catalina 22's and GH II) spent two nights at GTB, anchored in Duncan Bay on Tuesday and then sailed to Kenlake for two. We sailed back to GTB on Friday (thru the rain) and had a wonderful end-of-cruise at the CYC. We're doing it again (somehow) next year. I'll keep you advised. You have a wonderful area to sail in. Regards, Tom Grass p.s. What is Profin and Seafin? Are they sold by West Marine?
Paul, We pulled out of GTB on Saturday. We (7 Catalina 22's and GH II) spent two nights at GTB, anchored in Duncan Bay on Tuesday and then sailed to Kenlake for two. We sailed back to GTB on Friday (thru the rain) and had a wonderful end-of-cruise at the CYC. We're doing it again (somehow) next year. I'll keep you advised. You have a wonderful area to sail in. Regards, Tom Grass p.s. What is Profin and Seafin? Are they sold by West Marine?
Raising Main
I had the same problem raising my main.My boat had it's original halyards.They were 3/8" and had very nice splices for the shackles.That was the problem.The splices were about 8" long and because of the increase in diameter they wouldn't pass through the turning block at the top of the mast.I replaced my halyards with 5/16" and attached the shackles with good old bowlines - no more problems.
I had the same problem raising my main.My boat had it's original halyards.They were 3/8" and had very nice splices for the shackles.That was the problem.The splices were about 8" long and because of the increase in diameter they wouldn't pass through the turning block at the top of the mast.I replaced my halyards with 5/16" and attached the shackles with good old bowlines - no more problems.
Profin for sole and Seafin
for cabinets, bulkheads, etc. Makes em look like new. Mixture of varnish and oil. West can order them, at least they used to. Or you can order straight from the manuf - Daly's, in Seattle or somewhere out there. It's what Hunter uses on the boats. Search the archives, they have been discussed millions of time on here.
for cabinets, bulkheads, etc. Makes em look like new. Mixture of varnish and oil. West can order them, at least they used to. Or you can order straight from the manuf - Daly's, in Seattle or somewhere out there. It's what Hunter uses on the boats. Search the archives, they have been discussed millions of time on here.
Maybe some help
I have had my 26 for 8 years. I've chickened out of trading her a couple times because I love the boat. Yes, I have grown attached. Anyway, maybe I have some answers. 1. Trailer Coat the extension with white lithium grease. When you extend or retract the tongue, use the tongue jack to take the downward pressure off of the tongue. I raise up on the jack until I just see the trailer start to rise. You still need to block the wheels, but the tongue will slide very easy. With no boat on the trailer, I can push the trailer back and forth this way. 2. Floor - I haven't run into delamination, but I keep the floor cleaned with old english cleaner, and rub it down with lemon oil. It restores the shine and moisture in the wood. Once it delaminates, replacement is the only real solution. Hunter uses a "Pergo" type laminate in their new boats. 3. Sails - I have the same main problem. Make sure the mainsheet & the vang are loose when hoisting. The bolt rope shrinkage is the main culprit. I am not sure which threads to cut, so I have never done the cutting thing. 4. Bimini - There are 4 different Biminis out there. I have the six foot coaming mount. It has to be shifted all the way aft for the boom not to hit it. This makes the pulpit seats pretty much unusable. We haven't sailed with our Bimini in 3 years. I probably will get the stern rail seat mount Bimini some day. In WIsconsin, I welcome the sun since hats and coats (gloves, long underwear, hand warmers) are usually required in July. 5. Water under the sink - I never had a problem with this until last year. Went sailing with my brother's family on board and it turns out that the ballast tank vent plug was loose and popped out. I took on water through the vent. For the rest of the Summer, every time I put the boat on a port tack, I would end up with water under the sink. Finally, on the last trip home of the summer, I had the boat on a port tack for seven hours. All the water trapped on top of the ballast tank finally drained to the starboard side. You know what, the galley hand pump makes a pretty effective bilge pump for under the sink. The other thing to check is your sink drain hoses. When heeled, they could be under water, and if they are loose or cracked, you would get a leak. Once I got everything pumped out and dried, I haven't had any water since. 6. General finish - For minor nicks and stains, I find GEL GLOSS, a fiberglass tub polish to work the best. You can get the stuff at most hardware stores. It comes in a liquid and a spray. If you need some major polishing, the liquid is the way to go. For touchup and maintenance, the aerosol is great and it has a wax in it for the shine. I usually use 3M Marine spray cleaner & wax over the Gel Gloss. Some off season recommendations. If it hasn't been done, consider having a dealer drop your centerboard and replace the pendant. I had mine done this past spring. They didn't find anything really wrong, but the pendant was starting to wear. Others on the site have found worn hinges and hinge pins. When raising and lowering the mast, make sure your stay turnbuckles dont get bound up. This could cause major damage to the toggles.
I have had my 26 for 8 years. I've chickened out of trading her a couple times because I love the boat. Yes, I have grown attached. Anyway, maybe I have some answers. 1. Trailer Coat the extension with white lithium grease. When you extend or retract the tongue, use the tongue jack to take the downward pressure off of the tongue. I raise up on the jack until I just see the trailer start to rise. You still need to block the wheels, but the tongue will slide very easy. With no boat on the trailer, I can push the trailer back and forth this way. 2. Floor - I haven't run into delamination, but I keep the floor cleaned with old english cleaner, and rub it down with lemon oil. It restores the shine and moisture in the wood. Once it delaminates, replacement is the only real solution. Hunter uses a "Pergo" type laminate in their new boats. 3. Sails - I have the same main problem. Make sure the mainsheet & the vang are loose when hoisting. The bolt rope shrinkage is the main culprit. I am not sure which threads to cut, so I have never done the cutting thing. 4. Bimini - There are 4 different Biminis out there. I have the six foot coaming mount. It has to be shifted all the way aft for the boom not to hit it. This makes the pulpit seats pretty much unusable. We haven't sailed with our Bimini in 3 years. I probably will get the stern rail seat mount Bimini some day. In WIsconsin, I welcome the sun since hats and coats (gloves, long underwear, hand warmers) are usually required in July. 5. Water under the sink - I never had a problem with this until last year. Went sailing with my brother's family on board and it turns out that the ballast tank vent plug was loose and popped out. I took on water through the vent. For the rest of the Summer, every time I put the boat on a port tack, I would end up with water under the sink. Finally, on the last trip home of the summer, I had the boat on a port tack for seven hours. All the water trapped on top of the ballast tank finally drained to the starboard side. You know what, the galley hand pump makes a pretty effective bilge pump for under the sink. The other thing to check is your sink drain hoses. When heeled, they could be under water, and if they are loose or cracked, you would get a leak. Once I got everything pumped out and dried, I haven't had any water since. 6. General finish - For minor nicks and stains, I find GEL GLOSS, a fiberglass tub polish to work the best. You can get the stuff at most hardware stores. It comes in a liquid and a spray. If you need some major polishing, the liquid is the way to go. For touchup and maintenance, the aerosol is great and it has a wax in it for the shine. I usually use 3M Marine spray cleaner & wax over the Gel Gloss. Some off season recommendations. If it hasn't been done, consider having a dealer drop your centerboard and replace the pendant. I had mine done this past spring. They didn't find anything really wrong, but the pendant was starting to wear. Others on the site have found worn hinges and hinge pins. When raising and lowering the mast, make sure your stay turnbuckles dont get bound up. This could cause major damage to the toggles.
Tongue EXT
We had trouble pushing in the extension with the boat on the trailer. Finally learned to release the trailer winch and that takes out the bow in the extension. When the winch is tight, it won't go in at all.
We had trouble pushing in the extension with the boat on the trailer. Finally learned to release the trailer winch and that takes out the bow in the extension. When the winch is tight, it won't go in at all.
Tongue EXT 2
Take some of the weight of the tongue off the hitch with the "3rd wheel". I will take the bow out of the extension. Crank the wheel down as someone is backing up with the rig until it starts to slide in. Blocking the trailer is necessary.
Take some of the weight of the tongue off the hitch with the "3rd wheel". I will take the bow out of the extension. Crank the wheel down as someone is backing up with the rig until it starts to slide in. Blocking the trailer is necessary.
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